It’s really a tale of the two main characters and their attempts to get revenge on a slightly cartoon-like villain but it’s a hugely entertaining ride and the old-school horse racing world has a wonderfully nostalgic feel to it. From the bright lights of Las Vegas to hidden gambling spots, these movies invite you to explore the fascinating betting games. In any event, Eddie Garrett, a gambling addict, is tasked to stash the money for an acquaintance – if that’s what you can call a local thug who is rummaging through your kitchen one morning – who is heading into prison. Now, Garrett has no idea that he will be safekeeping a bag of money, but upon discovery, his gambling addiction kicks in. He smiles to himself, sweats profusely, and decides that fortune has truly smiled upon him. Jealousy takes over but Jabami has a presence of character that helps her overcome the pettiness of schoolmates and continually excel at gambling.
Category:Films about gambling
Except for Hoffman, that is — although, his one scene in the film almost managed to steal the entire show. Spacey is particularly checked-out here, and the movie was criticized for “whitewashing” in its casting, turning the mostly Asian-American real-life players into generic white people. But for a brief moment, before Spacey is being kidnapped and beaten in a hotel room, it’s an interesting look at the science behind smart gambling.
The Hustler
The film is a masterpiece, and it deserves respect for the quality of drama created by such simple materials. But it isn’t long until Vegas’ seductive wiles charm Clark (and his underage son Rusty!) into gambling away the family’s fortune. See our Live Dealer Casinos page for the best places to play and improve your strategy with our guides for Roulette, Craps and Blackjack. Evan, however, comedically feuded with Richie over the money as he believed he deserved of half the jackpot. Matchbook offers unrivalled pre-match and in-play markets for bettors and traders. If you want a light-hearted knockabout with a guys getting dealt quads over quads this isn’t the film for you, but if you want a film about gambling warts and all then check it out.
#5: “The Gambler” (
James steps into an underground poker game where older men are busy playing cards as if they were sitting at home. Many see Rounders as a classic representation of macho high stakes poker. Add to this some surprisingly feasible poker games and you have a film that most die-hard poker players will love. Another option among the best casino films about gambling of all time is an action-adventure James Bond movie, Casino Royale.
Exploring Character Archetypes of Poker Players in Movies
Of course, it’s also about British secret intelligence operatives and the undercover workings thereof. The 1970 gambling movie you’re referring to is probably «The Cincinnati Kid». Four years before the WSOP was even a thing, Warner Brothers released A Big Hand for https://true-fortune.us/ the Little Lady, also known as Big Deal at Dodge City. It may be a bit old for today’s poker audience, but those who don’t mind watching a classic will surely have fun. Even in the present day, it’s common for people to fire up Netflix and be met with various…
Cinema Review: 50 BEST CASINO MOVIES OF ALL TIME
Bob Montagne, the main character of the film, is known as an extremely lucky gambler who’s a big hit amongst the populace. But when things turn dour for him and his good luck subsides, the ones that once loved him the most decide to abandon him. In order to regain his wealthy status, Bob maps out a plan to rob a casino during a, particularly important weekend. But pulling off such a big heist is a lot harder than he expected it to be.
SportsMap EmailsAre Awesome
Some well-received poker films include the western comedy Maverick (1994), Survivor host Jeff Probst’s debut film Finder’s Fee (2001), the improv-inspired The Grand (2007) and indie comedy darling Hitting the Nuts (2010). The movie was released a few months before Chris Moneymaker won the 2003 Series of Poker main event. This movie was released in 2008 and is based on the true story of a group of MIT students who were recruited by a professor to use their skills in mathematics to count cards and beat the casinos at blackjack. Today, the legalization of gambling has become a Hail Mary last-ditch effort for many financially eroding urban areas like Detroit, St. Louis, and others — but Atlantic City did this first. The movie feels both dated and timeless, capturing a specific moment that has the power of folklore.
TWO FOR THE MONEY (
Ratner tries a few ways to secure the money he owes – mostly by gambling more, going deeper into debt, and ultimately relying on his wife, with whom they are about to get a divorce. The movie runs the gamut of things a viewer would expect to find in any great movie on gambling; greed, deception, money, power, and even murder. The film’s main point revolves around the involvement of the mob in the Vegas casinos of the ’70s and ’80s. The film goes from casino to casino when the World Series of Poker becomes a beacon for the main characters, making poker the poison of the protagonist’s choice. From director Paul Schrader, the writer behind Taxi Driver, The Card Counter is a dark and intense ride through the ideas of redemption and the tight grip of the past.
Kenny Rogers as The Gambler: The Adventure Continues
A calm and collected early feature from Melville, “Bob le Flambeur” practically oozes cool and anticipated the French New Wave with its innovative use of handheld camerawork and the jump cut. As far as true gambling addiction goes, James Caan’s titular character in The Gambler (1974) portrays the mental illness better than perhaps anyone in the history of the silver screen. He’ll bet good money on a poker game in Las Vegas, on a professional football championship with his friends, or on a pickup game of basketball he stumbled upon during his afternoon stroll through the park. After her career was derailed by a life-changing injury to her spine, Molly was then put in charge of an underground poker game within the Viper Room in Los Angeles. The film stars Jessica Chastain in the titular role, with supporting efforts from guys like Idris Elba and Michael Cera.
9. Casino (
Slowly, the rush of the gamble turns into a draining habit and a numbing existence, and Altman seems less concerned with studying addiction and more with the business’ gravitational push and pull between bewildered addicts. “Split” may not be peak Altman, but it’s a worthwhile entry in the filmmakers’ canon. Essentially it’s a story of a guy who is down on his luck and finds a bag of money and proceeds to rinse through it at a rate of knots before trying to “win it all” back. Smartly written and with characters that go beyond your usual poker player on a downswing trope make this a good watch with an ending that will likely live in the memory. Before going into the best movies at the casino, let us know how we selected them. So, we have curated a list of gambling movies on Netflix that will increase your interest in gambling.
The most efficient British Secret Service agent the world has ever seen takes on an especially dangerous mission in Casino Royale – take down Le Chiffre, a man who’s actually a financier for terrorist organizations. James Bond goes undercover in order to infiltrate Chiffre’s major poker game, which is secretly being used as a way to acquire even more funds to support his terrorist dealings. Bond goes all in order to put a stop to Le Chiffre’s plans and take down his evil organization in one fell swoop. Not only does Louis Cropa run a successful restaurant alongside his star chef son, but he also handles part-time bookmaker duties on the side. Louis’ fine dining establishment attracts a number of shady characters, including two gangsters whom one of Louis’ chefs is indebted to. Dinner Rush delves into one particularly busy evening at Louis’ restaurant when those two gangsters and a host of other eccentric personalities converge there all at once.
Top 5 Poker Movies
He encounters Vincent Lauria, a talented & green player, proposing a partnership. Check a 1988 American road drama film and one of the best casino movies of all time starring Tom Cruise for comedy. Charlie Babbit, a selfish, debt-laden car salesman, learns his wealthy father passed, leaving millions to his autistic brother in a trust fund. He breaks his brother out of a mental institution, using savant-level math skills to win while gambling in Las Vegas.
The episode we have in mind has to do with the story of Tim Donaghy, an NBA referee who was caught red-handed betting on his own games, and seriously putting the integrity of the game at risk. Money, Explained may not be your typical movie about gambling on Netflix, but there is a good reason why we have included it here. Gamblers are often tempted by the idea of making money and a living by just playing casino games. Money Explained though is a documentary that goes deep into the institution of money and how it works. Adam Sandler plays Howard Ratner, the owner of KMH, a jewelry store in New York, but he also has some problems on the side. For one, Ratner is a gambling addict who has raked in massive amounts of debt, and he owes money to many people – not all of whom are willing to cut Ratner a break.
Top 10 Movies About Gambling You Need To Watch Right Now
The stakes are truly raised within this classic film when Eddie decides to go all in during a high-stakes matchup. Tom Cruise appears in his second gambling movie role as car dealer Charlie Babbitt, who doesn’t have the best relationship with his now-deceased father. After finding out that a massive sum of inheritance money is being left to an autistic brother (played by Dustin Hoffman) he never even knew he had, Charlie gets the bright idea to somehow lift all of that money from his older sibling.
- Whether it’s a gritty depiction of a gambler’s descent into obsession or an exhilarating ride with card-counting geniuses, each film on this list offers a unique perspective on the alluring yet dangerous world of gambling.
- However, the documentary needs to be taken with a grain of salt, because it mostly portrays events as told by Donaghy.
- You take a risk every time you buy a ticket at the theater, or queue up a movie from your couch.
- Along with The Hangover and a select couple of others, Ocean’s Eleven (2001) by Steven Soderbergh is one of the most popular gambling movies ever made.
- In this 2006 take on Bond, Daniel Craig has his first romp as the infamous MI6 special agent and is tasked with beating a financier with terrorist ties at a high-stakes game of poker.
- From the bright lights of Las Vegas to hidden gambling spots, these movies invite you to explore the fascinating betting games.
- Jacques Dutronc plays the role of a charming man with a severe gambling addiction.
Atlantic City (
2016 spy film starred Daniel Craig as James Bond, a British Secret Service agent with a license to kill. He heads to Madagascar to discover a terrorist financier, Le Chiffre. Bond plays Le Chiffre in a high-stakes poker game at Casino Royale to topple his organization. This classic dramedy often tops the list of the best casino movies, offering a stellar performance from Elliot Gould, who plays a casual gambler. He and his seasoned friend, played by George Segal, head on a gambling streak to win big. They have their ups and downs as they take on the betting world in this Robert Altman film.
Mahowny, despite his seemingly successful professional life as a bank manager, secretly spirals into a catastrophic descent as his gambling addiction overtakes every facet of his existence. The film does not shy away from showcasing the harrowing impact on his mental health, financial stability, and crumbling relationships, rendering a powerful and somber reflection on the often invisible struggles endured by addicts. California Split is the Citizen Kane of gambling movies, and Elliot Gould gives a career-best performance as Charlie Waters, the serial gambling addict who can literally bet on anything. Gould commands the screen with cocaine-fast charisma, while Robert Altman’s casual realism sucks you into every frame, casino, and horse race. The film holds an 83% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and it garnered $450.7 million on an $85 million budget. That’s the greatest gross differential from any gambling movie ever released, and that commercial appeal is in large part due to its star-studded cast.
Rounders (
We wholeheartedly recommend watching Money, Explained in its entirety as it’s a highly educative if somewhat mass culture series. The insights are nevertheless accurate and they will definitely help you not just enjoy the institution of gambling as fiction but look at the hard facts and come back to the green felt a much smarter player. This includes assaulting Ratner at his daughter’s school and kidnapping him. The scene is gutting as Ratner is stripped naked and locked up in the trunk of the Mafiosi’s car. He then has to call Dinah, his girlfriend, who comes to his rescue, but that’s hardly all.
If you want to chill at home with a good movie about sports betting or gambling, we’ve curated a great selection of films that are currently on Netflix, as well as a few options that might make their way to the platform at some point. That said, the days of professional baseball players taking a dive to satisfy a bet are over because they’re paid millions anyway. That rough and beautiful city, complete with funeral jazz processions, gold teeth ladies banging the blues, and the poker games out behind the railroad tracks or in a back bar or the catered suite of a fancy hotel. Like the hard luck Pig who must always go broke, or the Doc who still believes a system can win, or Yeller who has a joke for every hand. There’s the millionaire Slade who just wants to win so he can dance on a grave and doesn’t care how it’s done.
Jessica Chastain embodies the real-life Molly Bloom, an Olympic skier who reinvents herself as the “poker princess” of Hollywood. Featuring intense scenes around the card table, the movie combines risk, reward, and personal ambition. This is not just a gambling movie but a character study of a man betting everything to stake his claim in the world. This iconic film takes us back to the time of the Great Depression when poker wasn’t just a game but a way of life. Steve McQueen delivers a stellar performance as an up-and-coming poker player seeking to establish his reputation by challenging a seasoned pro.
When a professional gambler by the name of Sydney runs into a fellow gambler named John, Sydney takes John under his wing and teaches him how to truly be successful in the world of gambling. This process seems to go well at first, but things take a turn for the worst when both men come into contact with a local prostitute and a sketchy casino patron. God of Gamblers (1989) stars Chow Yun-Fat as a master gambler losing his memory, while Freeze Out (2005) includes Tom Sharpe in an ugly high-stakes poker game. It’s pretty cool seeing the mix, from old-school vibes to the new high-stakes dramas.
- Although the MCU and DCEU exist separately from each other, there are instances where each studio has referenced the other in their movies.
- These films give further insight into the complex, often tense relationship between people and their wagering habits.
- He leads the NFL by a wide margin with 489 yards receiving and is the first player in franchise history with more than 450 yards receiving though the first four games.
- California Split is the Citizen Kane of gambling movies, and Elliot Gould gives a career-best performance as Charlie Waters, the serial gambling addict who can literally bet on anything.
- The most tragic story in My Hero Academia comes to a close in one of the most spectacular episodes of the series in years.
- The scene is gutting as Ratner is stripped naked and locked up in the trunk of the Mafiosi’s car.
- This film delves into the psychological aspect of gambling, portraying the superstitions, fallacies, and the thrill of the game that keeps players coming back for more.
- He puts his big casino heist plan into motion alongside a top-notch crew.
- One night, she gets arrested by the FBI and wrapped up in a high-stakes investigation into her players, some of whom are members of the Russian mob.
White Men Can’t Jump is centered around two basketball hustlers, Sidney «Syd» Deane (Wesley Snipes) and Billy Hoyle (Woody Harrelson)— who would gamble their last breath on making a jump shot if it meant they could gamble their next one. Billy makes a living lulling people into a false sense of confidence on the court because of him being an unassuming white man before turning into Larry Bird and snatching the money he can. What makes White Men Can’t Jump is how it displays the almost imperceptible difference between betting on yourself and betting for yourself. Because she was confident in betting on her preparation and smarts because it was a dream of hers. Billy made bets because his identity is inextricable from his gambling addiction.
Bugsy met Virginia in Los Angeles and fell madly in love with her, which caused him to divorce his then-wife. One of the first things most gamblers learn is proper bankroll management to ensure their bankroll lasts throughout the season. The team of highly gifted individuals is trained by a professor at MIT (although, in reality, the actual blackjack team wasn’t started by a professor) and has plenty of success in its escapades before things begin going south. Like most gambling-related movies, Disney+ doesn’t currently have Eight Men Out in its lineup. Dubbed the «Black Sox,» the movie portrays one of the most famous (or, infamous) baseball teams of all-time. More than 100 years later and baseball historians are still talking about one of baseball’s biggest scandals ever.
He is an unlucky gambler who believes he will soon be able to hit the jackpot. He gathers his team of accomplices, including Hollywood stars Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, and Julia Roberts, and attempts to rob some of the biggest casinos in Las Vegas. This thrilling and action-packed movie series showcases some great performances and highly stylized visuals that make it very worthwhile to watch. Rotten Tomatoes has it scored at 77%, which is solid but a travesty considering it’s one of the best sports movies ever.
- The team of highly gifted individuals is trained by a professor at MIT (although, in reality, the actual blackjack team wasn’t started by a professor) and has plenty of success in its escapades before things begin going south.
- The villain differs a lot from the usual bad guys Bond movies have; he does not want to destroy or conquer countries – or the whole world.
- Critics praised its ability to create a suffocating feeling of anxiety through its cinematography and Sandler’s dynamic and compelling performance.
- Faced with $44,000 worth of debt and a rich family that is ashamed of him, Freed travels to Las Vegas in the hope of winning big.
- Poker extraordinaire Eric Stoner has made it his mission to become the best poker player in town.
- Caan’s charismatic performance is key to the film’s grand act, for he turns Axel into someone we can’t help but root for even as he’s doing one terrible thing and making one nasty mistake after the other.
- Because he may actually be able to pull off an insane caper and redeem himself.
- Arguably the best film on the list, this is a clever piece of filmmaking that somehow makes a massive horse racing con not only believable but edge of the seat exciting.
- Bernie, once an unassuming cog in the vast machinery of the gambling industry, becomes a poignant focal point for exploring the broader moral and ethical implications of the casino world.
The Cincinnati Kid is a gambling story in all it’s glory and I won’t even tell you who wins. The poker is almost an aside to what is more of a meditation on the role of luck in life and what gambling for a living can do to a man’s soul. But aside from anything else it’s just hands-down one of the all-time great films with two of the all-time great actors in lead roles. Sit back, enjoy and rue how the internet ruined cheating for everyone. At its heart it’s a film about being human and how we deal with success and failure and what those two things do to our soul and to our wallet. No spoilers, as it’s a cracking tale, but if you come of out this the other side without asking yourself a couple of questions you’re a better gambler than most.
The film is an exciting ride through the highs and lows of living a double life; one as studious college students and the other as high rollers. The drama surrounding the world of gambling can suck you in with its tales of big wins, devastating losses and criminal masterminds. Digital Celluloid, a comic strip by artist Chris Cirillo, pokes fun at the films of today, tomorrow and yesterday.